To Resist the Enemy
Prayer: The Most Important Part • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
Lord’s Day 52
Q & A 127
Q. What does the sixth petition mean?
A. “And do not bring us to the time of trial,
but rescue us from the evil one” means:
By ourselves we are too weak
to hold our own even for a moment.1
And our sworn enemies—
the devil,2 the world,3 and our own flesh—4
never stop attacking us.
And so, Lord,
uphold us and make us strong
with the strength of your Holy Spirit,
so that we may not go down to defeat
in this spiritual struggle,5
but may firmly resist our enemies
until we finally win the complete victory.6
1 Ps. 103:14-16; John 15:1-5
2 2 Cor. 11:14; Eph. 6:10-13; 1 Pet. 5:8
3 John 15:18-21
4 Rom. 7:23; Gal. 5:17
5 Matt. 10:19-20; 26:41; Mark 13:33; Rom. 5:3-5
6 1 Cor. 10:13; 1 Thess. 3:13; 5:23
How many of you know this song?..... if you do, please sing it with me....don’t make me sing it all by myself....
1 Onward, Christian soldiers,
marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus
going on before!
Christ, the royal Master,
leads against the foe;
Forward into battle,
see his banner go!
Refrain:
Onward, Christian soldiers,
marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus
going on before!
[Intentionally didn’t show you the lyrics.....If I had asked our congregation 40 years ago to sing along with me from memory, I’m sure many more would know that song by heart....When I was a youngster growing up in church, this was sung quite regularly.... not so much today. More and more people are uncomfortable with it. CRUSADES. Look at other religions, Militant ISLAM.... doesn’t this song invite Christians to the same kind of expression?]
…AND YET.... these are BIBLICAL LYRICS!
[BIBLE is filled with metaphors of battle and warfare.... Eph 6 picks up on this.... yet battle is not against PEOPLE per se..... but against authorities, rulers, principalities,...... Ideas, worldviews, ways of being human, WORLD....... but also against inner desires and passions....battle of the will… sexual pleasure.....an over exposure to entertainment....”binge watching”....FLESH.....
Dark spirits....Columbine shooting....Dylan Klebold.... psychologists have read things that he wrote and even those who are not Christians per se, have used the kind of language that says he was possessed by something dark and malevolent. ....DEVIL]
So, where am I going with all this?
I share this in a way that hopefully all of us will be able to relate.
I share this so that we are able to more fully live into the metaphor of battle.
As a way of explaining this let me share this: Something difficult, hard, painful happens to us and we ask the question: “Why me?”..... Do you think soldiers ever ask themselves that question? Ortona?..... In a battle, bullets are flying, swords are swinging, bombs are exploding....if you’re hit by shrapnel from a nearby explosion....you don’t ask, “why me?”.....the question is irrelevant..... this is what happens in a battle....
Share confidentially my own recent difficult situation (Hootan accusations).... I didn’t ask why me?
Think of Paul.... 2 Cor. 11.... imprisoned, flogged, lashed, beaten, shipwrecked, known hunger, thirst, .....I face daily the pressure of my concern for the churches....his concern for the churches has consequences.... we’re living in the context of a battle!! .... I will boast of the things that show my weaknesses..... so that God’s strength and purpose can be accomplished through me....
This is how one writer puts it: “life is a spiritual minefield; amid such dangers we dare not trust ourselves; Father, keep us safe.” (J. I. Packer, Growing in Christ (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1994), 195.)
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And this is why our Lord graciously calls us to pray, Lord, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil..
It is the third of three requests that God says we should regularly pray for...... Provision, Pardon, and Protection.
Protection.... because as the Catechism says.....these sworn enemies never stop attacking us.
How to think about the phrase, Lead us not into temptation.....
God never tempts us towards sin....James.
13 When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
temptation = trial, testing.... Heb 12. discipline....
10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.
12 Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
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[Driving test illustration: unpleasant, but necessary.... produces confidence …that you’ve risen to the occasion and accomplished what was necessary....encourages us....]
So, “lead us not into temptation”.....why that prayer?
Growing in Christ (No Picnic)
Second, the pressures in times of trial can be so appalling that no sane Christian can do other than shrink from them, just as they shrink from the thought of having cancer. For both reasons Jesus was as right to start his prayer in Gethsemane with “Father, remove this cup” as he was to end it with “yet not my will but yours be done” (cf. Matthew 26:39). Temptation is no picnic!
Third, knowledge of our own proven weakness, thickheadedness, and all-round vulnerability in spiritual matters, and of the skill with which Satan exploits our strong and weak points alike, mixing frontal assaults on our Christian integrity with tactics of infiltration and ambush, so that while avoiding one hazard we constantly fall victim to another, compels us to cry, in humility and self-distrust, “Lord, if it be possible, please, no temptation! I don’t want to risk damaging myself and dishonoring you by falling!” Temptation may be our lot, but only a fool will make it his preference; others will heed Paul’s warning to the spiritually reckless, “let any one who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12).
Catechism puts it this way....”So that we may not go down to defeat in this spiritual struggle”
HUMILITY plus TRUST in God’s deliverance.....
Lord God, deliver us. I’m thinking of the myriad ways in the Bible that God comes alongside to deliver us....to rescue us, to strengthen us, to refresh us.
The story of God delivering the Israelites from slavery to the Egyptians.
The story of God delivering Daniel from the flames of the furnace and the mouths of lions.
I’m reminded of the power of prayer demonstrated in the story of Moses on the hilltop with arms lifted in prayer as the people of Israel were engaged in battle against the Amalekites.
The psalmist writes that the Lord leads us to refreshing streams and green pastures, he nourishes our soul .....and because of this he writes, “I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff they comfort me...”
Jesus says, come to me all you who are weary and I will give you rest...
And of course there are the words of Paul from our text, Put on the full armour of God....including the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Someone has said it's the dog principle. If you've ever trained a dog to obey, you will know this scene. A bit of meat or bread is placed on the floor near the dog, and the master says, "No," which the dog knows means that he must not touch it. The dog will usually take his eyes off of the food because the temptation to disobey would be too great, and instead he will fix his eyes on the master's face. (https://sermons.love/david-jeremiah/399-david-jeremiah-how-can-i-overcome-temptation.html)
Lord, I’m trusting you.... I’m fixing my eyes on you....I’m trusting in your Word, and in the strength of your Holy Spirit.... I’m uniting my life with the lives of other Christians so that I might know the encouragment and strength that comes from Christian fellowship.... I’m looking to you...
So that I my firmly resist my enemies.... until that day when we finally win the complete victory...